Wow! It turns out Michael Bay can actually make a good movie. Even a great one!

Rating: 9/10 (8 August 2005)

Maybe I was just feeling easy, but Bay's The Island strikes me as the most satisfying film I've seen all summer  very possibly the best film I've seen so far from 2005. Is it brilliant? Perhaps not, but it's a gripping sci-fi thriller that works on almost all levels. As sci-fi, it reminds me of stuff from the 70s like Logan's Run. I'm a big fan of Utopian/Dystopian sci-fi, and it pleased me enormously on that level. As an action film, it has a lot of stunning set pieces and chases. The action sequences are a lot clearer than is usual for Bay. Unlike two other actioners I've recently seen, Mr. & Mrs. Smith and The Devil's Rejects, I was never at all confused at what was happening. There aren't too many action bits that made me think, "Yeah right," and at least one of those over-the-top moments had a punchline that was so funny that it was very well worth it (it was probably the only one liner from an action movie that ever made me laugh out loud). The actors are all just models here (Scarlet Johanssen is some very good eye candy), but I did like a few of the supporting character actors, notably Ethan Phillips, Brian Stepanek, and the always reliable Steve Buscemi. Michael Clark Duncan is also good, though his part is too small. Sure, the film's political agenda skews to the right, but the story follows a common science fiction motif which questions a scientific moral issue to a ridiculous extreme. Frankenstein is pretty conservative, as well. I think that the politics in The Island are historically interesting, but not something that could effect anyone's opinion. The production design is outstanding, as are the cinematography and score. I couldn't have believed that Michael Bay could actually produce something not only watchable, but damn good. I think if it hadn't been him who directed it, the movie would be getting a lot more praise.